NADP News September 09, 2010

MANCHESTER, N.H. (Reuters) - Don Duhamel is trying to raise money for a homeless shelter for veterans and John Kerry (news - web sites) is his biggest contributor. But Wesley Clark ,Kerry's Democratic presidential rival, has also donated and plans to give more.

Duhamel's Liberty House project in Manchester illustrates the critical importance of men and women who are serving or who have served in the U.S. armed forces to the decorated war heroes as they seek voter support ahead of Tuesday's New Hampshire primary.

There are more than 130,000 veterans in New Hampshire -- and they vote.

"Why do you think that Bush got beat?" said Carl Walton, an Air Force veteran from Portsmouth. He said veterans' support helped push Arizona Sen. John McCain, a prisoner of war in Vietnam, ahead of Bush in the 2000 New Hampshire primary.

Many veterans here are Independents, and are eligible to vote in the Democratic primary. For Kerry, and more so for retired Army Gen. Clark, military service and combat valor are essential elements of the candidacies.

Kerry has long supported veterans and organized them for his political campaigns as a U.S. Senator from Massachusetts.

Clark is a political novice who served 34 years in the Army, rising through its ranks to become the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe in the 1990s and his rapport with servicemen has been as a commander, not as a politician.

The two men have reached out to each other in positive and negative ways, swapping criticism over issues relevant to veterans. Clark has proposed expanded benefits including health care for veterans. Kerry has vowed to fight Bush administration plans to restrict overtime pay for U.S. workers, an important issue for hourly wage veterans.

In the case of Duhamel, the Vietnam veteran hoping to open his shelter in Manchester, Kerry and Clark engaged in a bidding war of sorts for his support.

BIDDING WAR FOR VETERANS

Duhamel says Kerry donated $10,000 in December, after which Clark's campaign gave $1,250. Kerry then gave another $10,000 and Clark has pledged proceeds from the online auction of an argyle sweater he has worn on the campaign trail.

Bidding for that novel item ran at several thousand dollars over the weekend.

Duhamel first supported Kerry then switched to Clark and is now back with Kerry. "They are about equal, that's what makes it hard," Duhamel said. "I wish I could vote for both."

Clark has wrapped his candidacy around his years of service and the leadership skills he attained in the Army, referring to Kerry as a "junior officer" in one statement.

Kerry was a lieutenant in the Navy who won the Silver Star for valor, as did Clark, in Vietnam.

The most pointed attack from a Clark supporter on Kerry came in Rochester, New Hampshire, where Brian Hardy, an Army veteran from New Hampshire skewered Kerry's performance as a senator and his experience as a leader.

"Wes Clark has led an army and has administered to the health, housing and education needs of hundreds of thousands of military families across the globe. Mr. Kerry has run a senate office and now he wants to run the White House," Hardy said.

Kerry, who has promoted his own military service, has been clearly annoyed by the "junior officer" reference and other comments about the issue.

In an interview on the CBS program "60 Minutes" to air on Sunday evening, Kerry said it was the first time he'd heard a general be so dismissive of lieutenants who had been in battle. Clark was also wounded in Vietnam.

Veterans interviewed supported both men, but some had problems with Kerry's opposition to the Vietnam War when he returned from his tour of duty. And some believed the choice for president involves more discussion about health care, jobs and homeland security than military service.

"It looks like that both have excellent military service. I can see both Kerry and Clark leading," said Bill Bonnice, a World War II Navy veteran from Nashua, New Hampshire

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